Trolley head for electric traction



July 14, 1931. c. c. G. TAYLOR TROLLEY HEAD FOR ELECTRIC TRACTION Filed Aug. 1'7. 1929 INV ENTOR W85 LU mm 6, W.

ATTORNEY Patented July 14, 1931 PATENT caries CHARLES CLIFFORD GHENT TAYLOR, F FOREST GATE, ENGLAND TROLLEY HEAD FOR ELECTRIC TRACTION Application filed August 17, 1929, Serial No. 386,520, and in Great Britain September 14, 1928.

This invention relates to trolley heads for electric'railways of the overhead feed Wire types in common use.

Ordinary trolleys give considerable trouble by separating from the line feed wire, particularly at curves and intersections, largely due to their inability to freely swivel, their rigidity causing the wire to contact with and climb out of the wheel grooves.

Another source of annoyance is the excessive sparking between the wheel hub and its spindle, due to faulty electrical contact.

It is therefore an object of this invention to materially eliminate these disadvantages by providing a trolley head with a forwardly offset, caster-like mounting permitting it to' swivel on a vertical axis, in advance of the transverse axis of wheel rotation, means being also provided to prevent excessive swivelling movement.

A further feature is in the provision of devices which at all times maintain adequate electrical contact between the wheel and its supporting frame, thus efiectually avoiding sparking.

Another aim is to produce a simple, inexpensive and entirely practical trolley head capable of long continued service and of being substituted for types now in use.

These several important features are accomplished by the novel construction and combination of parts hereinafter described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a material part of this disclosure, and in which Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a trolley head and support as made in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical transverse sectional View of the same taken substantially on line 22 of Fig. l.

The holder as shown consists of a hollow cylindrical body 5 adapted to receive a clamp bushing, not shown, to engage a trolley pole, or the pole may be set direct in the body as may be preferred.

A web 6 on the underside of the body extends downwardly and outwardly beyond its end to integrally support a socket 7 closed at its bottom and having an enlarged upper portion 8 preferably connected by a flange 9 with the rear end of the body 5, whilst directly thereabove is a rearwardly extending stop arm 10'.

The bearing formed in the socket 7 is suited to receive a vertical spindle 11 which may rest upon a hardened sphere 12 acting as an anti-friction thrust bearing element and formed in the spindle is an annular recess 13 engaged by a pin 14 passing through the wall of the socket and provided with a head to facilitate withdrawal.

The spindle 11 extends downwardly from the bottom of a hollow casing frame 16 having raised, outwardly flaring sides 17 presenting concave inner surfaces, the edges of which are spaced in parallel to produce an opening 18 therebetween.

The profile of the convex sides 17 is essentially circular except for a forwardly projecting portion 19 and at the center of the sides, which is offset rearwardly from the center or axis of the spindle 11, are bosses 20 having downwardly directed triangular apices provided with outstanding marginal ridges 21.

The sides 17 preferably contain recesses 22 directly above the bosses 20, which latter elements are bored to receive a spindle 23 provided with an enlarged head 24; at one end, which is counter-bored into the side plate, whilst the opposite end of the spindle is drilled transversely to receive a cotter pin 25, the pin and head being Well within the plane of the ridges 21 so as to avoid damag ing contact with adjacent objects.

A grooved wheel 26, having extending hubs 27 at each side, is rotatably mounted on the spindle 23 centrally in the space 18 and so closely as to prevent the entrance of a line feed wirevshould it escape from the wheel groove.

Flat washers 28 are arranged on the spindle 23 to contact the ends of the wheel hubs 27, being firmly pressed thereagainst by coiled compression springs 29, constituting spring washers, surrounding the spindle 23 and held from turning by reason of their outer ends being fixed in the inner sides of the bosses 20 which they abut.

The washers 28 are provided with lugs 80 to engage in the recesses 22 being held from rotating thereby, and due to the pressure of the springs 29, conduct current without shunt direct from the wheel 26 to the casing frame sides 17, thence through the spindle 11, and socket 7 to the body 5 to be taken off in the usual manner.

In order to prevent excessive turning of the wheel and casing on the axis ofthe spindle 11, the forward Apart of the frame 16, above the extensions 19, is shaped and proportioned to contact with the stop-arm 10 when the limit of swivel motion of the wheel carrying frame has been reached.

From the foregoing it will be seen that a simple device for this purpose has been disclosed in the preferred form of its embodiment, but it is not desired to restrict the details to the exact construction shown, it being obvious that changes, not involving the exercise of invention, may be madewithout conflicting with the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent, is p 1. In a caster trolley head, a spring washer and a plain washer for the maintenance'of electrical contact, said plain washer being flat throughout its entirearea and having an upstanding lug in the same plane, and means in said head to engage said lug to prevent rotation of the washer.

2. A trolley head comprising a support adapted to engage a pole, a socket integral with said support, a frame having an integral spindle engaged in a vertical plane in said socket,said frame having opposed concave sides essentially circular in outline a second spindle mounted in a transverse horizontal plane in the. sides of said frame spaced rearwardly of the axis of the first spindle, a wheel having extending hubs ournalled on the last named spindle between the frame sides, plain flat washers abutting the ends of said hubs, lugs on said washers engaging the frame,and springs interposed between the frame sides and said washers to press the plain washers into -electrical engagement with said hubs.

3. A trolley head comprising a frame mounted to swivel on a vertical axis, said frame including two concavo-convex opposed side elements, a spindle mountedfto extend across the side elements in a plane transverse and rearward of the plane of the swivel axis, a trolley wheel rotatableon said extend across the side elements in a plane transverse and rearward of the plane of the swivel axis, a trolley wheel rotatable on said spindle, plate and spring washers interposed between the frame sides and wheel hub ends, said washers being non-rotatable, and means to limit the swiveling action of said head.

5. A trolley head comprising a support adapted to engage a pole, "a socket integral with said support, a frame having a spindle ngage in ve i alr-planeins Socket, a second spindle mounted in a transverse horizontal plane in. said frame and offset rearwardly of the axis of the first spindle, a wheel having extending hubs journalled on the last named spindle between the frame sides, plain flat washers held nonrotiatably by said frame on said'spindle, spring washers between the frame sides and flat to press the l atter into electrical engagement with the wheel hubs, and anarm on'saids'up; port to:intercept excessive swivellin'g motion ofsaidhead, 1 V

In testimony whereof I affixtriy signature.

can nes CLIFFORD cam TAYLOR.

spindle, plate washers at the ends of the wheel hubs, and spring washers pressing said plate washers forcibly against said hubs.

4. A trolley head compris ng a frame mounted to swivel on a vertical axis, said frame lncludmg two concavo-convex opposed slde elements, a spindle mountedto 

